Creative Conversations no. 016 | chatting with Laura Rahel

When I think of Laura, I think of florals and white and pretty paper, which is pretty much how she describes her style too. Laura constantly inspires me with her projects and I loved getting to know her better – I am sure you will too!


 

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Tell me about yourself. I’m a 24 year old lover of natural light photography and shelter dogs. I love documenting memories and I believe in creating the beautiful, passion filled lives we want for ourselves. I am a natural light photographer. I run two etsy shops, one of which sells my Project Life designs; the other is where I showcase and sell the floral crowns I design.

I’m a dream chaser. I’m a lover. I’m a woman who doesn’t compromise on her passions and instead pursues all of them. I’ve been married and divorced. I have Unexplained Female Infertility. And sometimes I blog about all of the above.

What is one weird or interesting fact about you? My middle name is Rahél. Pronounced “Ray-elle”. I am pretty much obsessed with it. People always try to correct me and say “You spelt your name wrong.” Or “Didn’t you mean ‘Rachel?’” After 24 years with the same name, I am 120% confident in my ability to spell and pronounce it correctly; usually I don’t even bother explaining that to people anymore.

Also, when nobody else is home, I pee with the bathroom door open.

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What do you do to express your creativity? I express my creativity through creating things. Project Life spreads, traditional scrap booking layouts. Designing floral crowns or Project Life cards. I love a good DIY project. I like to write. I love photography. Anytime I see the opportunity to create something beautiful, I try to do so.
 
How did you get started doing this?
I’ve always felt the innate desire to create things, I just wasn’t very good at it until recently. Working with florals is something my grandmother passed along to me. Then, I started exploring natural light photography so I could take photos of my floral crown designs. When Pinterest came around, I discovered Project Life, which I started a little over a year ago. Whenever I see something I love, I like to try and give it a go to see if I could be good at it. I like to test my boundaries and explore my creative abilities.

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Who or what inspires you? What inspires me – love, stories, beautiful things, grass and trees and lakes and flowers.

Who inspires me – oh this list could be so long but I’ll stick with my number one. Mara from A Blog About Love. Mara, despite infertility and divorce, has found a way to live so beautifully. She is so kind and forgiving and loving, the life she and her now husband have created together is so inspiring. She inspired me to change my story. When I was going through really hard challenges with my infertility and divorce, their story inspired me to change. To stop being sad and angry and disappointed and to become this fulfilled, happy, passionate person that I am today. I put in the work, but she inspired me to realize that I could do it, that my happiness was in my hands. I realize this isn’t a creative inspiration source, but she is probably my number one life inspiration and that’s important.

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How do you stay inspired? What do you do when you feel stuck or uninspired? I like to work on things in cycles when I do feel inspired to do them. I’ll work on Project Life everyday for two weeks and then once I’m not feeling it anymore, I’ll go a month without touching my album. When I’m not inspired anymore, I’ll stop and I move on to something else while I’m inspired to work on it. No pressure to do things I’m not currently inspired to do.

The best part of having so many creative outlets is that I’m always inspired to do something. So if it’s not Project Life, it’s photography or mini albums or designing things.

Why do you do what you do? What motivates you to be creative? For me, creativity is an innate quality ingrained into my being. It’s a part of who I am and something I need to do. It makes my heart and soul happy to create beautiful things and share them with people.

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Describe your creative style. Bright, light, white. Polka dots, florals and stripes.

Name your top five favorite tools or products.

  1. Pretty paper
  2. Paper trimmer
  3. At-home photo printer
  4. Sharpie
  5. Sequins

Are you an early bird or a night owl? When are you most productive? Night owl for sure! 10pm-2am are always my prime hours of productivity.

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What project(s) are you currently working on? My Radical Self Love Bible. Catching up on my 2014 and 2013 Project Life albums. A huge hand painted wooden sign for our dining room.

If you had to be a color in a crayon box, which color would you be? White.

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If you could possess a super power, which one would you choose? Teleportation. Experience the entire world.

What is your favorite quote? This always changes. A couple years ago, I got a tattoo that says “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.” I still love the quote but it’s becoming rather popular right now so of course my favorite has changed. Right now, I’m loving “The older you get, the more you realize that it isn’t about the material things, or pride or ego. It’s about our hearts and who they beat for.”

Follow Laura on Instagram, her blog, Pinterest and check out her Etsy shop!

Creative Conversations is a blog series getting to know fellow creatives and friends that I’ve made through the internet. Read more about Creative Conversations here.

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